For this final installment in the month’s discussion on making money writing books, I wanted to summarize all the ways you can make money selling your words.

You can write and publish your own books, have a traditional or independent publisher publish your books, or you can start a writing or publishing business.

The business can involve any services among: ghostwriting, copyediting, indexing, coaching, publishing, proofreading, researching, formatting, and what I do more and more of—teaching!

Which of these is most profitable?

Writing one ebook could be profitable if you priced it low and sold a large quantity. I met an author at my local Kindle meetup who sold 300 of his novels in one month at $2.99. He used social media as his primary marketing method.

Writing one print book could be profitable if you already have a large fan base or mailing list, are out on the road as a speaker, or you teach, consult, or have other ways to reach a lot of people.

Writing a series of ebooks or books is a better plan for increasing profits by reaching more targeted markets with different subjects or the same target market with different ideas on the same subject.

Creating other products like workbooks, audios, and e-courses to supplement your ebook or book is the primary way most authors are building income.

Lastly, selling your services or products to help others write their books is another way to make money with your writing.

One way other than selling books that writing can be profitable is when you make it a business. As a ghostwriter and copyeditor, I write and edit books and e-books and make money whether or not the books sell. I also sell my own products, but writing as a business suits me better and provides a steadier income.

Is a writing business right for you?

Starting a writing business vs writing your own books doesn’t have to be an either/or situation. As in my case, I write for others for a living, and write for myself for a loving. I expect to make a profit with each!

If you do decide to start a writing business, you have several choices to make. First is which service you’ll provide: ghostwriting, copyediting, proofreading, coaching, formatting, indexing, researching, publishing. I think that’s most of the services involved in book publishing. Then you need to select a genre: nonfiction or fiction, and go deeper into each of those. Next is format: books, e-books, articles, websites, newsletters, dissertations… And last is target audience: individuals, business owners, coaches, speakers, consultants, attorneys, healthcare providers…

I suggest you combine your passions, your skills, and what’s most needed today. That’s how I’ve stayed in business for 10+ years!

As you may well know, book publishing is going through major upheavals as e-books begin to surpass “tree” books in sales! Yet, there are those authors who have good reasons to print their books. Some may want to pursue the path of traditional publishing to build their writing career, gain more exposure, and have the support of a publishing team.

Some authors want full control and choose to self publish their book, acting like a home contractor: choosing the editor, book designer, printer, etc. Whichever path you choose, there’s money to be made in both—if you think big picture.

If you are blessed enough to be accepted by a traditional publisher—if that’s your preference—you may receive an advance against sales to start. A new author will most likely get a small advance, perhaps around $5,000. Then you get semi-annual royalties which range from 10% to 12.5% of retail price on hardbacks and 7.5% to 10% of retail price on paperbacks. Obviously, you need to sell a substantial quantity of books for this to be profitable. Other than the best selling authors, the way an author can earn more money with traditional publishing is to sell a multi-book deal, preferably a series with continuing stories if fiction, or a franchise like Chicken Soup for the Soul if nonfiction. And you need to market, promote, and sell!!!!!

As a self published author, I feel you have much more profit potential. You can issue your book as a print book, hardcover or softcover, e-book, audio book, workbook, e-course, and more. The sky’s the limit because you have full rights to reproduce your content in any format. You can also set the price and drive the marketing campaign. If you use your book as an introduction to your services and /or other products you can build a fan base and have ongoing sales as you build your information business. Prices for e-books range from .99 to $9.99 and for print books from $9.99 to $29.99 average. And after costs, you keep it all!

Profit is only one of many factors to consider when choosing a publishing path, so keep it in mind and keep it in perspective.

I hope you’ve been enjoying my weekly writing lessons. I love teaching people about writing books. I know we all write for different reasons, but in case you’d like to make some money on your books, kept reading. That’s what I’ll be discussing this month.

Now the truth is that most authors rarely make a profit on one book. They either need to write more than one book, often a series, or build a business around their book by offering other products and services like CDs, seminars, and coaching.

Oh, you’ll find the occasional one-book wonder, the bestselling darling of the literary world, but that happens so infrequently that I wouldn’t suggest you count on it! And more often than not, it occurs with fiction rather than nonfiction.

So where’s the money in writing?

Here are some profit centers you can count on as a book or ebook author:

Write a book or ebook to a large enough target audience and promote the heck out of it. If you already have a following—a list or a large database—you may sell a substantial number of books to see a profit from one book or ebook.

Plan a series of books, like the Chicken Soup or For Dummies franchise. You can either write a number of books on one topic to many audiences such as dog training for different types of dogs (Collies, dachshunds, poodles, etc.) or write on several topics for one audience, like exercise, diet, dressing, etc. for pregnant women. (One subject, many target markets or One market, many subjects)

Build a business around your one book by adding a seminar, CD set, teleclass, or coaching services. People learn in various formats, so offer them. And this way you have multiple streams of income.

Yes, you can make a profit writing books and ebooks. Keep reading this month for more on these ideas.